British Airways Cancels Most UK Flights Due to Strike

Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport in London was virtually empty Monday due to a pilot strike over wages. (AP photo/Matt Dunham)

LONDON (AFP) — British Airways said Monday it has been forced to cancel almost all its flights from UK airports on the first day of a pilot strike.

“After many months of trying to resolve the pay dispute, we are extremely sorry that it has come to this,” the airline said in a statement.

The airline said it remains willing to return to talks with the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA).

“Unfortunately, with no detail from BALPA on which pilots would strike, we had no way of predicting how many would come to work or which aircraft they are qualified to fly, so we had no option but to cancel nearly 100 percent of our flights.”

The UK flagship carrier and its 4,300 pilots have been locked in a nine-month pay dispute that could disrupt the travel plans of nearly 300,000 people.

Pilots are to continue their strike on Tuesday and are threatening to strike for one more day on Sept. 27 — then possibly again closer to the winter holidays — should the dispute remain unresolved.

BALPA has rejected a pay increase of 11.5% over three years that the airline proposed in July.

British Airways says the offer would see flight captains receive “world-class” pay and benefits of around £200,000 ($246,000 or 220,000 euros) a year.

It says that two other unions representing 90 percent of the airlines’ workers have accepted the 11.5% raise.

BALPA counters that co-pilots’ salaries average around £70,000 — and that of junior ones drop down to just £26,000.

This leaves some in heavy debt since they must first undergo training that the BBC estimates costs around £100,000.

BALPA also cites a nearly 10% jump in pretax profits reported by British Airway’s parent company IAG last year.